Chapter
Five
Closer
The silence, which probably only lasted a few seconds, was getting unbearable to Rikku. She felt her face getting exceedingly hotter without any intention of letting up, it seemed. It worsened when Rikku finally pictured what she must have looked like through Auron's eyes -- a big red balloon.
"Right. Um...can I have my clothes?"
"If you insist," Auron said calmly with a hint of amusement in his voice. Rikku grinned, her face growing steadily paler and cooler without Auron's intent gaze, as he turned his back towards her and retrieved a skimpy pile of clothes from a skinny, un-inviting looking chair next to the door. They had Rikku's scent, which he was pleased to smell as he tossed them to her across the room.
The second they left his hand he immediately regretted it and hoped that she didn't have the same reflective instincts she usually took with her in battle while she was naked under those covers. But even as he wished it he knew what she would do without thinking, and he quickly turned towards the door...but a moment too late, for he caught a glimpse of Rikku quickly sitting up to catch her clothes, exposing her body from the midriff upwards.
"Sorry," he said hoarsely. He heard a whimper of surprise as Rikku suddenly realized what happened, and then shuffling as Rikku dipped back in the depths of the blankets. "I didn't mean to..."
Rikku tried to laugh but it came out as a sort of a sick, nervous "heh heh" sound. Then with more confidence she added, "It's okay! I know you didn't mean it," cheerfully. Auron couldn't help but smile as he fought the tightening of his pants, the blood rushing to his crotch. Quietly he said, "Good. We'll talk in the lobby, after you get dressed." He opened the door and peeked out in the hallway to make sure no one was there to witness his erection and then stepped out, closing the door softly behind him. Rikku didn't hear his loud footsteps echo through the hallway until a minute or so later, and only when she heard the last few echoes dying away did she jump out of bed to examine herself in the mirror.
"Uugh, bruises!" She said as she examined her arms, touching them a little and wincing. They were in the shape of what looked like finger prints, and she guessed that Auron held her a little too tight when he carried her to the Travel Agency. She let her mind settle on this thought for a moment. Then she walked back towards the bed, a bounce returning to her step and humming quietly to herself, and got dressed.
"How is Rikku?"
"She is fine, Rin."
"I would be surprised if she didn't have bruises on her arms, the way you were holding on to her when you came here."
Auron raised his eyes to the Al Bhed merchant's as he leaned over the desk to examine some jewelry. Rin grinned, and they both returned their attention to the glass case beneath them. At this moment Rikku tiptoed through the hallway, closing the door behind her softly, and peeked behind the wall into the lobby to watch Auron and Rin. What's he up to? she wondered as she leaned in closer to hear what they were saying.
"So, who are you buying this jewelry for? Some one special?"
Auron hesitated, which Rikku could sense even though his face was, as usual, nearly hidden.
"Yes," he finally said quietly. Rikku's insides turned and the blood rushed to her ears as she could feel a spark of jealousy within her. Some one special?
"Those." Auron said as he squatted, pointing to something in the case.
"An excellent choice, though very expensive. The feathers I picked from a rare bird myself, and are guranteed to last a lifetime, even through the weather of the Thunder Plains."
"How much?"
"Eight thousand gil," Rin said quickly. Rikku could see Auron retrieving a pouch from his waist and picked a few gold coins from it. They glittered as he handed them to Rin, whose face lit up as he performed his usual courtesy bow. Rikku rolled her eyes; Auron probably just made his year.
The thought would have been funny to Rikku if her insides weren't too busy raging with jealousy and anger. Who does he think he is! She said to herself. Then she plummeted into the reasons why it was inappropriate, unthoughtful, and even plain out rude of him to be buying his girlfriends presents while he was supposed to be helping her. And why is he even here, anyway! Rikku was perfectly capable of camping out in the stupid Thunder Plains by herself, she doesn't need some legendary guardian protecting her. She's a legendary guardian herself, you know!
A sadness was beginning to ebb its way into Rikku even as her mind was flaring, and she tried to push it away but it just got worse. Being angry and sad is not a good combination for Rikku, especially for the people around her. A memory of her Home being blown up by her own family flew through her mind, as well as the memory of absolutely ripping through that stupid flying bird thingy they had to fight only moments later before entering Bevelle to save Yuna. It was a good thing she didn't decide to take it out on anyone else, otherwise there would have been casualties on Yuna's pilgrimage.
Without thinking Rikku stomped through the lobby and flew out the door, leaving Auron in a trail of rage. He retrieved the boxed earrings from Rin, tucked them in his belt and jogged out the door after her. It didn't take long for him to catch up to Rikku, who was busy muttering to herself and heading straight for the shelter under which they've been sleeping, splashing along the puddles and completely ignoring the loud cracks of lightening that struck the towers around her. Auron noticed this, and would have smiled if he wasn't so concerned with Rikku's emotional state.
He grabbed her arm and whirled her around, which produced a painful groan from Rikku. "OUCH!"
Quickly releasing his grasp, he noticed the bruise marks on her arms and Rin's prediction of them. But he ignored it, and tried to keep the frustration out of his voice as he asked her what was wrong with her.
"Me? What's wrong with me? Oh no, the better question is what's wrong with you!" She said angrily, flailing her arms and yelling "gah!" as she turned around and headed for the shelter. Auron heard her muttering something about a pervert buying presents for his whores as she sat down and started a fire, and then he knew what she was talking about.
"Rikku..."
"WHAT!" She said angrily, looking up from making dinner.
Auron gazed at her, feeling hurt and not sure what to say. She went back to ignoring him and fixing their food. The truth was, she couldn't look at him for more than a few seconds. Otherwise she might burst into tears. After a few minutes of angry mutterings coming from the girl (who Auron thought still looked beautiful), Auron finally figured something clever to say to reverse the situation.
"Rikku, you're not a whore."
It took a few seconds before Rikku's mumbling stopped. "Huh?" She looked up at him, her angry eyebrows softening and her green swirly eyes growing into two large moons. He waited for the thought to completely form in her mind as he sat down crossed-legged and stared at her.
"Oh..." she trailed off, embarrassed, not sure what to do. Those earrings were for...me? I'm the special person? Her insides immediately cooled off the rage and were instead filling up with happiness to the point where she thought she would burst if her mind wasn't racing with how to cover up her folly.
"Heh. Whoops," she said sheepishly, with a hint of defeat in her voice. She went back to sprinkling the steak she was cooking over the small fire with basil leaves and pepper, looking rather pleased with herself. Auron smiled at her, waiting patiently for her his dinner, his heart less heavy than a few moments before. There wasn't a lot of dinner conversation, but there was a lot of staring and smirking.
Meanwhile, Rikku was bursting with questions that would have to be asked some other time, as they both laid down to sleep. For the first time since she got here she was actually enjoying herself, and the lightening seemed a little less frightening.
The opportune moment for question asking came a few days later. Auron was sketching something in a book, leaning against the trunk, and Rikku was just about getting bored of the book she was reading about a Ronso tribe in Mount Gagazet. After Yuna's pilgrimage she felt she owed it to Kimahri to learn as much as possible about his family and his tribe for all that he's done for her, but that doesn't mean she wasn't bored out of her freaking mind.
"Um...Auron?" She peered over the trunk, trying to catch a glimpse of him. He grunted in response, and she could hear the scratching of the pencil against the paper as he continued his sketching.
"Um...are there whores?"
The squiggling stopped, and Rikku's heart raced with anticipation of.
"No." More scribbling. Rikku breathed a sigh of relief and didn't dare think about asking about his past. He was always touchy about that subject to people they've run into on the pilgrimage -- Kinoc, Seymour... -- and she wasn't up for making him uncomfortable.
Though she could hardly doubt that he deserved it, after all of the discomfort he seemed to be putting her through on this little camping trip.
"And I don't have girlfriends, either." He added. Rikku could tell he was trying to suppress a laugh even as he said it, which made her giggle. Minutes passed. Awkward minutes it seemed to Rikku, who couldn't concentrate on her book for the life of her anymore.
"Right. So when do I get my earrings?"
"When we're finished here."
"When's that?"
"It's up to you."
"How about now?"
He sighed and stopped sketching, recalling a very persistent Rikku from a year ago. He was glad she hasn't changed that way. "Are you afraid of lightening anymore?"
Rikku thought about it for a moment. Just then a loud crack sounded a few meters away and she couldn't suppress a small squeak, but she wasn't nearly as frightened as she used to be. Auron chuckled, and said, "Not yet, then." Back to his sketching. Rikku was silenced for the time being, a feeling she wasn't used to.
"This is very brave of you, you know."
"Huh?"
"Well, I've never met anyone who faces their fears like you do. You haven't given up." Rikku detected pride in his voice, which sent bursting sensations of pride through her own body. Seizing the moment, she said cheerfully, "Thanks a lot, Auron."
"Hm," he grunted. And then, "you are welcome."
Half an hour later, Rikku was busy preparing their lunches beside Auron, who's left shoulder was facing her. She sat only a foot away, but she still couldn't peep at what Auron was sketching without compromising herself.
Overtaken by curiousity, Rikku had to ask. "So uh...watcha drawin'?"
"A dream." Auron answered simply. He could see her puzzled expression from the corner of his eye but was at a loss on how to explain without giving it away, for the drawing was certainly not for Rikku's eyes.
"You know, I never really took you for much of an artist before...but I guess it kind of fits, huh."
"What do you mean?"
"Oooh I don't know, you being the dark mysterious type and all, maybe? I guess I should have known."
If only she could see what I'm actually drawing... he thought to himself with a smirk as he gazed down at his sketch book at a half-naked Rikku in a bed, a look of surprise on her face as something is being tossed at her. It is true, though, that he didn't really have all that much time to draw on the pilgrimage, and that's really the only time Rikku and him have ever seen each other. Until now, that is.
"Lunch is ready!"
Auron put down his sketchbook and faced Rikku, who was grinning at her sweet-smelling sandwich before she took a huge bite out of it. Auron was surprised that she was able to take it down without choking, and it made his bites seem like a little girl's in comparison. He chuckled at the thought.
"Hm?" She stopped chewing and stared a Auron with a confused expression on her face, which made her look ridiculous with her puffed out cheeks from all the food she was eating.
"You're just being cute," he said with a smirk as he watched the blood rush to her face, and took a bite out of his own sandwich. By now Rikku was used to the sight of Auron without his huge red cloak on, but when he said that she looked at him with a hungry expression on her face that could not be satisfied by the sandwich, because he was looking at her with the same expression, though less obvious.
With one final gulp, Rikku put down her sandwich and drank down a glass of water. Then she sat there, looking at the ground just before Auron. Auron saw her expression and put his sandwich down as well. He was just swallowing the last bits of his sandwich, gazing at Rikku, when the next thing he knew he felt something warm and soft pressing against his lips and a smooth body pressing against his own.
AN: Heh, finally Chapter 5! I hope you all had as much fun reading that as I did writing it. I promise this isn't the last you've seen of me yet, I still have more in store for this couple's little camping trip. X
